The long awaited 10 Nov booking opening date arrived and I, like many others, was waiting for the advertised 11.00 time for it to open. I had logged to our website a few minutes before this time ready; on refreshing the page at 10.56, I found that the tour was available to book. The necessary boxes were filled in and confirmation received of a successful booking at 10.57. A quick message to a friend enabled them to also make their booking before the tour filled up within just a few minutes.

Eagle eyed people may have noticed the tour reference number on our events page was 554, as the reverse of 455, having been left vacant for this tour. It was apparent very soon that many more people than the train could carry wished to travel, so arrangements were made during the next couple of weeks for a relief to run an hour later (thanks Kev and SWR). This also sold out, taking slightly longer due to lower key advertising; the original tour had even made the BBC. Running two tours created much work ensuring enough units, crews and stewards were available for the second train, along with our Bookings Officer processing so many bookings (a 70-year Society record for participant numbers in one day).

Many thanks must go to all concerned for all the hard work behind the scenes, allowing 864 passengers to bid farewell to the workhorses of South Western suburban services for over four decades.

09.32½ wasn't too early a start for me as, living in 455 territory, I just had a short walk to Motspur Park station and a 25 minute journey to Waterloo. Amazingly, my service train was also formed of one of the few remaining trains of 455 stock. Walking through that train, I met up with some fellow tour passengers.

Reaching Waterloo on time, a throng of tour passengers gathered around the P19 ticket barrier area. To speed up access once the train had arrived from its home depot at Wimbledon, tickets were checked before its arrival and coloured wristbands issued. The appointed time arrived and an orderly queue through Ticket Gate 65 (by luck exactly where I had been waiting) and an orderly rush followed. Participants could purchase souvenirs from various railway group stalls (some with proceeds to the good causes) before all standing behind the yellow line outside their allocated coach. The doors were released about 10 mins before departure and a mad scramble followed to choose seats in the allocated coach.



The route had been planned to cover many of the lines normally used by the units during their lifetime plus some interesting parts rarely, or never, covered with passengers on board. Hardened Society track enthusiasts were allocated to Coaches 'A' and 'B' at the rear of the train on departure from Waterloo, which would be the buffer stops end at the majority of the non-passenger lines visited.

Departure from P19 was booked at 09.32½; I think this is the first tour I have been on not starting on a whole minute. Train 'A' comprised units 5717+5712, the 455 fleet being the only units on the railway not using the full six digit class and unit numbers, maintaining the British Rail South Region tradition. Train 'B' had units 5870+5727, booked to follow the same route broadly an hour later. Both trains were immaculately turned out, with very shiny exteriors. The cab sides had stickers: 'Class 455 Farewell 1983 to 2025'. Internally, the advertising spaces had been utilised to display some of the history of the units.

Spot on at 09.32, we departed, taking the Windsor Reversible line to International Jn, where we moved left one line to the Up Windsor Line for the short distance to Carlisle Lane Jn, diverging left again to the Down Windsor Fast Line. Running along the Bidirectional Up Windsor in the Down direction, at Nine Elms Jn and through Queenstown Road P2, our train regained the normal direction on the Down Windsor Fast line as far as Point Pleasant Jn (unfortunately not doing the booked route of Slow line - P6 through Clapham Junction - Fast line). There, the 455 Farewell crossed to the bidirectional single line (formerly the Down) to East Putney. This is normally used by ECS, a few late night / early morning PSULs and occasional diversions when the main line via Earlsfield is closed. A short trip over the Underground District line took us to Wimbledon to regain the main line and run Down Fast to take the rarely used crossover at New Malden to the Slow Line and onto the Kingston Loop line. Reaching Strawberry Hill, our tour took the facing crossover to the Down Line to reverse at the limit of shunt. It was almost certainly the first (and an hour later the second) passenger train to do this crossover in this direction. Back at Kingston, we reversed using the 8-car Down bay P1 (facing Strawberry Hill), which will certainly see less use once the full fleet of 10-car Class 701s are in use. P2 will be used to reverse 10-car trains.






Then it was back to Waterloo P19 via Richmond, completing coverage of the entire Kingston Loop, using the Up Fast line at Twickenham, Up Slow line at Barnes and the London end crossover there to the Up Fast line. The last more unusual movement was to cross to the Windsor Reversible line approaching Queenstown Road, passing the long disused P1. Before the second leg of the tour, official photos were taken of various VIPs (former and current people connected with the 455 fleet over the past years).



After this photo, refreshment and loo break (in no particular order) at Waterloo, it was time to traverse the eastern side of SWR suburbia. Again, departing exactly on time at 11.34, the same route was taken as leaving Waterloo two hours earlier. This time we ran through Queenstown Road P3, with a brief stop to fit in with other slightly delayed trains, before crossing to the Down Main Fast line. A few minutes later, it was over to the Down Slow Line at Wimbledon West Jn, before turning left at Raynes Park. Our first major track highlight of the day was at Epsom, where the train ran to the Up Siding buffer stops, south of the station, before reversing back to P3 and heading south again through the Surrey countryside to reach the regular Class 455 destination of Dorking. Retracing our route, it was back to Leatherhead, where the trailing crossover north of the station was used to head south again, this time branching right at Leatherhead Jn just beyond the station. Running through Bookham, our tour reached Effingham Junction, made (in)famous by a former resident Alan Williams in his Modern Railways magazine column. Running into the Down Siding neck (electrified unlike the yard now) used to access the former carriage shed here, we were unable to view any of the Multi-Purpose Vehicles now resident as the shed doors were closed. A quick reversal back into the station over the mainline crossover to Up P1 followed.












Another reversal was performed at Effingham Junction station, before continuing south and towards Guildford for a lunchtime break. Approaching Guildford, we were treated to a small weave, where we crossed to the Up Cobham line, before crossing back to our designated P2. Suitably refreshed and with a chance to check out another Network SouthEast Friends sales stand, participants rejoined for the short trip into North Box Perturbation Siding 1 to reach the buffer stops. The leading coach for this move was rather fuller than previously, enabling some participants to traverse the full line length. As we were entering the siding, train 'B' ran into Guildford, with much waving by tour participants to each other.












A brief pause in P4 and we were then away south. Those at the station were treated to a tremendous arc from the rear collector shoe but, fortunately, there seemed to be nothing untoward and it was into unfamiliar territory for 455s on part of the very recently resignalled Portsmouth Direct line, reaching Haslemere close to the summit of this route. Although booked to use P2, we ran into P1 to the delight of many as we would then cover the rarely used London end crossover after reversal (as did Train 'B').






After the short break at Haslemere, it was time to head back to London. There was a crew stop at Guildford P8, where the two tours passed again, then onto Woking. Being 21 Dec, it was now getting dark but no one minded. We took advantage of some of the bidirectional working - booked to run Down Fast from Woking Jn before crossing to pass through P1 and Up Slow. However, we were a few minutes late, so crossed to the Down line approaching Woking Jn then ran up the Down Slow through P5 before using the London end crossovers to the Up Fast. Overtaking a stopping train before Byfleet & New Haw, we curved left through Addlestone and Chertsey in our booked path to reach the Reading line at Virginia Water. Then it was on to Staines, where a good run would enable us to regain time by Twickenham.

The full length of Staines Up Goods Loop between the stabling sidings and main line was traversed before reaching Feltham, where we crossed over to run along the Depot Up / Down Arrivals Line. Ten new berthing sidings with a Controlled Emissions Toilet Apron and Train Wash have been built on part of the former marshalling yard for Class 701 EMUs. Continuing, we covered the whole line before crossing back out to the main line and reaching Twickenham. Another reversal (in P3) and now back on time, allowed us to run through Strawberry Hill to use the peak hour only side of the triangle to Fulwell.

Beyond the station is a short tunnel which can suffer from flooding, requiring Shepperton branch trains to reverse at Fulwell. We performed this manoeuvre before heading back to Waterloo via New Malden on the Slow Line, with a short deviation over the Fast between Wimbledon and Vauxhall.

Back at our starting point but now the other side of Waterloo in P1, we were greeted by a platform full of people eager to see the train. It was deemed wise not to release the doors before we were to enjoy the final highlight of a short shunt into, and back out of, the relatively new single 10-car South Siding, which replaced the two former 8-car electrified sidings and a short non-electrified 4-car siding. I believe the 455 fleet is the only class of unit that has travelled the full length of all the sidings here! The country end of the line is dead on the course of the line out of the second Waterloo Necropolis station too.






Our Epsom-based previous Membership Secretary thoroughly enjoyed the tour. While it was great to do Epsom Up Siding, he had previously done it on a service train. [You should have said Alan, we could have done the Down Siding!] One day, travelling to work in Moorgate, the driver of his train to Waterloo incorrectly accepted the wrong route (to Victoria) at the junction, a signaller's error. It was easy to spot the error, as it was after privatisation with different liveries. He ran up the platform and joined the last coach. Sure enough, the train reversed into the Up siding, from where it then left for Waterloo. The tour highlight for him was Waterloo South Siding, a track he had longingly coveted regularly for 40 years.

There were many young people on the train - most participants were on their first ever railtour and thoroughly enjoying it. Cleverly, as well as sitting most BLS members together, Martha, our Bookings Officer, had put families together and couples together. VIPs (including Tim Dunn and Francis Bourgeois) also had an allocated area. Numerous photographers were out along much of the route, again especially the younger generation, capturing the last few weeks of Class 455 operation (which are still ongoing).

Particular thanks to SWR - the very well organised tours ran like clockwork. Also, to our Fixtures Secretary Kev Adlam, who spent a great deal of time and effort on this tour and to the many others involved.



Total mileage was 145m 7ch (Train A'). Over 12,200 raffle tickets were sold on Train 'A' alone, raising over £2,200. Nearly as many were sold on Train 'B'. Despite the reasonable cost of train tickets £45.50 Adult (wonder where that came from?) - under 18s £27.25 - ticket sales were over £35,500. With revenue coming from sales of souvenirs and the headboard auction etc, over £45,000 was raised for SWR's three charities: Macmillan Cancer Support, The Alex Wardle Foundation and Railway Children.

https://tinyurl.com/yx84bzb8 is an SWR report about the tour and about railway enthusiasts in general